Along with their red T-shirts, red-and-white pom poms and glittery poster board signs, the thousands of Kahuku High School football fans making the trek to Aloha Stadium for tomorrow's state semifinal game against Farrington should remember to pack one more thing:
High-blood pressure medicine.

Because if the 4 p.m. showdown is anything like the Red Raiders' past three games, hearts will be racing in the fourth quarter.

Kahuku, the state's only Division I unbeaten team at 11-0, has reached this point only after an O'ahu Interscholastic Association playoff run that included a goal-line stand in the closing seconds against Mililani, a game-winning touchdown with 27 seconds remaining vs. Castle and a fourth-quarter, two-TD rally to edge Leilehua in the championship game.

This Red Raiders team, which also overcame a 14-0 deficit to clip Farrington, 16-14, with a fourth-quarter field goal in the regular season, appears to have a flair for the dramatic.

"I don't know what it is," said Farrington coach Randall Okimoto, whose Governors lost to Kahuku in last year's double-overtime OIA title game. "A lot of times, they might have trouble passing in the regular season, but in the playoffs somehow they'll hit all their passes when it counts. Or they'll fumble a lot, but somehow they're able to jump right on it. It's funny how they always seem to find a way."
Kahuku coach Reggie Torres said it's not just luck.
"We practice those situations, we set up different scenarios in practice to challenge them," Torres said Tuesday night. "Today, we had one where the ball was on the 50-yard line with 30 seconds left and no timeouts, and we're down by two. We do other scenarios — third-and-short, defense on the 1-yard line, overtime, special teams, a lot of down-and-distance."
Torres said the Red Raiders have been preparing for close games since August, expecting several opponents to take them down to the wire.
"We knew it would be very difficult to go undefeated this year because of the parity in the league," Torres said. "We were fortunate to pull some games out. We had some breaks come our way."
But Okimoto said Kahuku has a long history of fantastic finishes, and that history breeds success.
"Because of their tradition and championship experience, to me they have true belief on their sideline," Okimoto said. "It's harder for other teams that haven't done it before, and that's the edge they have. From the beginning, they have a mindset where there's no doubt, no negative feelings. It's not as easy if you haven't done it."
But Torres said his returnees have experienced the other side before.
In last year's state semifinals, Leilehua rallied from a 10-3 deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime, and the Mules won, 17-10.
"We had stopped them the whole game, but the Leilehua kids believed in themselves and we use that as an example we could learn from," Torres said. "Sometimes all it takes is one drive, even one play, to turn the game around. It starts with a belief and a trust in each other."
In the OIA quarterfinal victory over Mililani, the Trojans had first-and-goal from the 1 with just over a minute remaining, trailing 35-27. But the Red Raiders stuffed Trent McKinney on consecutive quarterback sneaks, and defensive end Kona Schwenke stopped tailback Taz Stevenson behind the line of scrimmage on third down. Stevenson then lost control of a wet ball and fumbled on fourth down.
In the semifinal win over Castle, Viliami Pasi scored on a 1-yard run with 27 seconds left to help Kahuku escape, 19-14.
And in the title game against Leilehua, the Red Raiders trailed 20-10 in the fourth quarter but Hauoli Jamora recovered a blocked punt in the end zone with 8:30 remaining, Punga Vea scored on a 44-yard end reverse run with 5:06 left, and the defense held on for a 24-20 victory.
"The game's not over as long as there's time on the clock," Torres said.
And he expects no less excitement tomorrow.
"It's gonna be a battle," he said.

EXTRA POINT: Farrington's starting left tackle and team captain, Joseph Siliga, must sit out tomorrow's game after being ejected in the third quarter of last Friday's 48-16 first-round victory over Honoka'a. Okimoto said Siliga was using a "club" blocking technique that might have been misinterpreted as a punch, but Govs athletic director Harold Tanaka said they decided not to appeal the ejection, which by rule makes Siliga ineligible for the following game. Laimana Kapuwai will replace Siliga at left tackle.